About Me

Blessed Mother Teresa of Kolkata in her very own words had said about Mr Bhutoria ---
“He is a boy with a different vision altogether”. ---
Sundeep Bhutoria is a man with a mission – to make meaningful contribution to the betterment of society and to promote Indian art and culture at home and abroad.
Born in Churu in the Shekhawati region of India’s desert state of Rajasthan, Sundeep is very well known in the social, literary, diplomatic and the political circles in India.
A globetrotter, Mr Bhutoria straddles across worlds and wears many hats – a popular youth icon, tireless social worker and activist, ardent admirer of Indian art and culture, a successful businessman - he is engaged in many UNA projects holding key positions. He is closely associated with many social welfare organisations and trusts.
He loves to read,writes columns in dailies, plays the violin and enjoys playing golf and watching polo. He lives in Kolkata (India) with his wife Manjari but divides his time between Rajasthan, Delhi and London each year.
In a short span he has achieved many milestones and recognitions.

Sunday, February 3, 2013

For the past two weeks Jaipur
has been at its busiest with some very high voltage events and
functions – Jaipur Theatre Festival, Jaipur Literature Festival,
Polo season, India Stone Mart 2013 and other events. Amid
controversies like the Ashish Nandy case, that turned the national
media glare on Pink City, there was a very unique and interesting
event that did not get the kind of national media attention it
deserved.

With K G Pramod at the Kanota Library

I am alluding to the inauguration of General Amar
Singh Kanota Library & Museum on January 29th 2013 in the
presence of Maharaj Gaj Singh of Jodhpur and Princess Dia Kumari at
the Kanota Garh aka Castle Kanota. This hotel, located
on 8-acres of land about 15 kms away from Jaipur on the Jaipur-Agra
Highway, is one of the finest heritage hotels of Rajasthan.

Built in
1872, the 20-roomed hotel houses a built-in museum and library which
displays gold work and unique collection of rare books and the walls
are covered with frescoes and paintings.For the first time I saw
a collection of 44 years of diary by the dashing solider, booklover,
diarist and respected senior statesman of the Jaipur State, Thakur
(General) Amar Singh of Kanota, who was an extraordinary man. A
graduate of the first batch of the Imperial Cadet Corps instituted by
Lord Curzon in 1901, he was also among the first Indians to become a
King’s Commissioned Officer in 1917; in other words, eligible to
command British officers and soldiers.After retirement from the
British Indian Army, he was instrumental in establishing the Jaipur
Lancers, that was later merged with other state cavalry units to
become the 61st Cavalry of the Indian Army. He also had the spirit of
a scholar and thinker. He wrote diaries for forty four years (1898 to
1942), leaving behind 89 volumes of what is perhaps the longest
continuously-written diary in the world. The story goes that he wrote
these diaries with an unfailing regularity on a daily basis for
nearly four-and-half decades, except for one day, when he was
ill.These priceless collections contain astonishing details of
its times and is a resource base of its era providing fascinating
insights into both British and Rajput life. His legacy also includes
several thousand books, journals, manuscripts and magazines in both
Hindi and English which is possibly the finest period pothi khana or
library in Rajasthan.Writer Pramod Kumar K J took more than two
years to arrange these 44 years of handwritten diaries into a
library. Apart from the diaries, the museum showcases tables, pens,
swords, suitcases etc., that have preserved and displayed nicely.
Many of the erstwhile Thakurs and Royal families, after Independence,
had sold off their royal properties or belongings. The family of
Thakur Amar Singh of Kanota has preserved all his memorabilia, from
suitcases down to a pen nib, that is now a part of a unique museum
opened to the public. This only-of-its-kind museum, I I think, would
soon become a much-appreciated tourist spot. So don't miss it when
you there in pink city next.